Is Užice the capital of culture or corruption

There are still two months until the end of the "Era of Culture", as the one-year project in which Užice is called national Capital of Culture.

The Ministry of Culture, the initiator of the National Capital of Culture program, which before Uzice was Čačak, is satisfied with the program of the current Capital of Culture so far. When the Minister of Culture Nikola Selaković visited Užice at the end of December, he was very satisfied, noting that "only in the final phase, which includes the implementation of the most important projects, will he be able to say with certainty that Užice as the National Capital of Culture has justified that epithet".

On that occasion, he pointed out that "over the last two calendar years, 294 million dinars have been earmarked for Uzice - the National Capital of Culture from the state budget, i.e. the budget of the Ministry of Culture, and more than 2025 million dinars are planned for 100."

Major projects are pending.

The main projects in the Year of Culture, as Minister Selaković called them, will only begin work. These are the Children's Cultural Center, the Ceramics Gallery, and the adaptation of the house of the first academic painter from Užice, Mihailo Milovanović. He announced that they will be completed by the end of the year.

The Capital of Culture (PK) explained to the "Vremena" portal that the start of work on these three facilities was delayed due to obtaining the necessary permits. They also state that "near the very end is the permanent display of Užice through the ages, in the National Museum of Užice", they state from PK Užice.

And what has already been completed within the framework of the Year of Culture, according to the Užice PK, is "the reconstruction of the large hall of the City Cultural Center, the installation of an elevator for people with disabilities, the replacement of complete mechanical installations, which is the first capital infrastructural project within the Capital of Culture of Serbia." They explained that this "cultural institution got its new look after more than five decades, and the modern, multifunctional space, with its capacities, provides the opportunity to host a number of different program contents", they stated in announcement.

Photo: Promo

Also, in the National Library of Užice, the Laboratory for the Restoration and Conservation of Old and Rare Books was opened, and shortly after that, a phototype edition was presented September Four Gospels, the first printed book in Serbia, a famous monument of early Cyrillic printing in the Serbo-Slavic language. The publishers are the National Library of Užice, the National Library of Serbia and the Institute for the Serbian Language SANU".

During the aforementioned visit to the Capital of Culture, Minister Selaković especially praised the Restoration Laboratory. He said that "three such departments are planned for the whole of Serbia - in Užice, Niš and Kragujevac. Although the city with the smallest budget and the smallest number of inhabitants, Užice was the first to complete a department that is doing well today, while Niš and Kragujevac are just preparing to invest in this type of content.

The programs are over.

All the programs have been implemented, says PK Užice, and they state:

Photo: Promo

Užice National Theater had two premieres Traveling theater Šopalović and ,The summer when I learned to fly. This institution hosted two important events - the 60th festival of professional theaters of Serbia "Joakim Vujić" and the 17th festival for children and young people "Little Joakim". A ballet was performed Coppelia, and the premiere of the play about Marija Maga Magazinović is expected - Maga.

The city gallery held notable exhibitions such as Reading images,  Dreams of light, Era Milivojević - Art is life. The National Museum organized the exhibition Colors of time - Mihailo Milovanović (1879–1941), portraitist in war and peace.

In the press release, they remind that an Expert Meeting was held on the occasion of two decades of work of the Forum of Slavic Cultures, an organization that brings together thirteen Slavic-speaking countries and works to promote Slavic cultures.

The city's cultural center organized Jovan Kolundžija's concert, Užice comic meetings, Bazum jazz festival, Urban Era programs, Interakcija 2024 and Fantast fest. The Russian pianist Oleg Weinstein performed in the Town Hall, and maestro Bojan Sudjic with the "Virtuos" on the Town Square.

Capital of corruption

The year in which Užice was the Capital of Culture of Serbia will also be remembered for its affairs.

Namely, right before the beginning of the Year of Culture, in February 2024, Užice's Green Left Front obtained documents about, according to them, illegal actions, for which they filed a criminal complaint with the Basic Public Prosecutor's Office, and Užice was called the "Capital of Corruption". As they told the "Vremena" portal, the court did not make an announcement on the matter, and they assume that they are waiting for the Year of Culture to expire.

ZLF still stands behind the claim that "public procurement within this project is not carried out through the publication of a public invitation, but through direct negotiation".

They state that "based on publicly available information on the public procurement portal, they came to know that screenwriter Staša Petrović and director Darko Kamarit were hired for these jobs without publishing a public invitation. It is particularly worrying that the total value of hiring the screenwriter initially amounted to 1.000.000,00 rsd, but with the award of the contract the value increased by 100.000,00 rsd, which is also the case with the hiring of the director for the job of preparing and realizing the five introductory events and the grand opening ceremony which was initially estimated at 1.725.000,00 rsd, but this amount would increase with the award of the contract to 1.980.000,00 rsd."

Price increase without explanation

Further, ZLF also states that "the city of Užice initially decided on over 600.000 euros for the reconstruction of the Great Hall in the City Cultural Center, but after six months and four changes to the contract, the value of the works increased by more than 50.000 euros without clear and purposeful explanations."

They explain that "all four changes that were implemented in the period from October 2023 to February 2024 are justified by the need to perform works that were not foreseen in the basic contract, and the performance of which became necessary."

They say that the resignation of certain officials of the local self-government is a clear proof that they "exposed serious corrupt practices", and they cite the resignation of the head of the City Administration for the affairs of city bodies, general administration and social activities, Milan Stanimirović, as well as the resignation of Branislav Mitrović, president of the city assembly, to the position of coordinator. of the working group for the preparation and implementation of the Serbian Capital of Culture program, which he withdrew "under pressure from the mayor".

Uzice is the Capital of Culture of Serbia until March 21, when it inherits Zrenjanin. Assessments about whether Užice is the capital of culture or corruption, and whether the program offered during this special year actually belongs to the regular activity of the City - such as the two premieres of the National Theater and the festival that it also organizes, should be left for the Capital of Culture.